information for... insurance companies

As an insurance company, you will be used to thinking and working long-term and dealing with complex interrelationships. In this context, sustainability criteria are of increasing importance to both insurance and investment. As far as insurance is concerned, social and environmental aspects are relevant when assessing the insurability of individual projects and sites as well as entire companies. For example, the (re-) insurance of a pharmaceutical or chemical plant should also depend on whether the company complies with important environmental standards. In the case of large infrastructure projects such as dams, it is important to exclude any reputational risks which might arise, for example through human rights violations connected with the projects. Similarly, sustainability criteria can also be used in capital investment to improve the risk-return profile. We would be pleased to provide assistance here, with services including the following:

ORBIT database

Our ORBIT (oekom Responsibility Benchmarking & Information Tool) online database provides, among other things, direct access to the detailed information contained in oekom’s corporate ratings of over 3,800 companies (-> ORBIT Companies) and in our 57 country ratings (-> ORBIT Countries). ORBIT opens up new options for analysing the opportunities and risks presented by individual equity and bond issuers. Comparing the sustainability performance of companies and countries makes it possible to identify opportunities and risks which may impact on the performance of securities.

Investment universes

The oekom Universe covers 6,200 issuers (5.500 corporates and 700 (sub-)sovereigns). We filter the issuers of equities and bonds in our overall universe to identify those which best match your sustainability fund concept. We can compile appropriate negative or positive lists, whichever you prefer. This procedure is based on our detailed ratings and analysis of breaches of the exclusion criteria, which we monitor continuously. -> Investment universes

Portfolio analysis

As part of our portfolio analysis service, we will review the sustainability quality of your current capital investments. You can customise the criteria used to do this, for example based on the EKD’s [Evangelical Church in Germany] guidelines on ethical sustainable investment. The analysis serves as a basis for identifying the action you need to take and for determining appropriate measures. -> Portfolio analysis

Risk analyses

Our analysts will help you identify risks that could arise as a result of a wide variety of different social and environmental factors. Our “Climate Change” and “Biodiversity” handbooks, for example, will enable you to analyse and evaluate the sector-specific risks that could arise for companies as a result of climate change and species extinction. oekom’s Emerging Markets Risk Assessment (EMRA®) describes and evaluates the current social and environmental situation in emerging and developing countries and helps you to manage the social and environmental risks of your involvement in these countries. -> Risk analyses

Controversial Weapons Monitor

For the oekom Controversial Weapons Monitor database, oekom research has identified around 400 companies worldwide which are suspected of manufacturing controversial or even banned weapons. In the cases of around 250 of these companies, detailed research has confirmed these suspicions or at least provided indications that the companies are involved in the production of such weapons. These include numerous issuers of equities and bonds. The database offers detailed information on all these companies. -> Controversial Weapons Monitor

We would be pleased to provide you with further information about these and other services. Contact: Client Relations, e-mail: clients@oekom-research.com